Manchester City's assistant coach and midfielder are suspected of insulting Messi.

Manchester City midfielder Fernandinho and assistant coach Mikel Arteta are alleged to be the culprits behind the altercation with Barcelona's Lionel Messi after the Champions League group stage match between the two teams.

The first player suspected of taunting Lionel Messi was midfielder Fernandinho. However, Fernandinho himself has denied the accusation.

According to the former Porto player, he went straight to the dressing room and had no contact with any member of the Barca team. Fernandinho himself also insisted that he is not the type of person who likes to badmouth or provoke others.

The second case involves assistant Mikel Arteta. According to The Sun, Pep Guardiola's assistant at Man City celebrated a little too enthusiastically in the tunnel, which annoyed Messi: "Go celebrate in the dressing room, don't do that here." Arteta has not yet commented on The Sun's report.

Was Fernandinho truly wrongly accused?

As is known, after that unclear situation, still upset about his team's comeback defeat at the Etihad Stadium and further provoked by the opposition, Messi flew into a rage and stormed into the Manchester City dressing room to find the aggressor.

The Argentinian star showed he was no pushover, storming in and shouting, "Whoever insulted me, step forward if you dare!" Amidst the tense atmosphere, many players from both teams rushed to intervene. However, it was only when Messi's close friend, Sergio Aguero, stepped in to mediate that the 1987-born superstar finally relented.

Speaking to the press afterwards, Aguero said: "Whenever you lose, you're usually unhappy. He was the same. I know him well, so I know when he's okay and when he's not. But when you lose, nobody can stay calm. It's nothing serious. I heard something, but I don't know the specifics."

According to bongdaplus